SSDI questions

julie · Nov 29, 2007

LouLou,

i'd love to chat with you about all of these questions you have. I'm headed off to bed now (were are sick-we've all got the crud going around) but I'll post some responsese to yourr questions tomorrow, and if you can PM or email me (division902@verizon.net), I can send you some documents that will help you get organized with a case.

I've never heard of Beth Sufian giving grants, but she is EXCELLENT (taught me everything I know) and IF you do need a lawyer, I would recommend her and only her. Although I'd first recommend applying and going through that sans lawyer...and expect to get denied at least once, nearly everyone does.

Also, if you want to chat on the phone about it, I'd be happy to give you a call. Just PM or email me your phone number, or I can give mine to you if you'd prefer to call me.

julie · Nov 29, 2007

LouLou,

i'd love to chat with you about all of these questions you have. I'm headed off to bed now (were are sick-we've all got the crud going around) but I'll post some responsese to yourr questions tomorrow, and if you can PM or email me (division902@verizon.net), I can send you some documents that will help you get organized with a case.

I've never heard of Beth Sufian giving grants, but she is EXCELLENT (taught me everything I know) and IF you do need a lawyer, I would recommend her and only her. Although I'd first recommend applying and going through that sans lawyer...and expect to get denied at least once, nearly everyone does.

Also, if you want to chat on the phone about it, I'd be happy to give you a call. Just PM or email me your phone number, or I can give mine to you if you'd prefer to call me.

julie · Nov 29, 2007

LouLou,

i'd love to chat with you about all of these questions you have. I'm headed off to bed now (were are sick-we've all got the crud going around) but I'll post some responsese to yourr questions tomorrow, and if you can PM or email me (division902@verizon.net), I can send you some documents that will help you get organized with a case.

I've never heard of Beth Sufian giving grants, but she is EXCELLENT (taught me everything I know) and IF you do need a lawyer, I would recommend her and only her. Although I'd first recommend applying and going through that sans lawyer...and expect to get denied at least once, nearly everyone does.

Also, if you want to chat on the phone about it, I'd be happy to give you a call. Just PM or email me your phone number, or I can give mine to you if you'd prefer to call me.

julie · Nov 29, 2007

LouLou,

i'd love to chat with you about all of these questions you have. I'm headed off to bed now (were are sick-we've all got the crud going around) but I'll post some responsese to yourr questions tomorrow, and if you can PM or email me (division902@verizon.net), I can send you some documents that will help you get organized with a case.

I've never heard of Beth Sufian giving grants, but she is EXCELLENT (taught me everything I know) and IF you do need a lawyer, I would recommend her and only her. Although I'd first recommend applying and going through that sans lawyer...and expect to get denied at least once, nearly everyone does.

Also, if you want to chat on the phone about it, I'd be happy to give you a call. Just PM or email me your phone number, or I can give mine to you if you'd prefer to call me.

julie · Nov 29, 2007

LouLou,

i'd love to chat with you about all of these questions you have. I'm headed off to bed now (were are sick-we've all got the crud going around) but I'll post some responsese to yourr questions tomorrow, and if you can PM or email me (division902@verizon.net), I can send you some documents that will help you get organized with a case.

I've never heard of Beth Sufian giving grants, but she is EXCELLENT (taught me everything I know) and IF you do need a lawyer, I would recommend her and only her. Although I'd first recommend applying and going through that sans lawyer...and expect to get denied at least once, nearly everyone does.

Also, if you want to chat on the phone about it, I'd be happy to give you a call. Just PM or email me your phone number, or I can give mine to you if you'd prefer to call me.

Allisa35 · Nov 29, 2007

Well, I can try to offer some answers. I am fairly new to this myself (I was just approved at the beginning of the year). If you talk to Julie, I'm sure she can answer your questions. She helped me a lot too.

1. I think mine was fairly close to what they approved. I don't really remember what my report said, but I believe the amounts were fairly close. It is based on your work history.

2. I don't know for sure. They have various guidelines that they follow for cystic fibrosis.

3. I didn't use a lawyer. I did call the hotline for Beth Sufian and spoke with her briefly to see if she thought my chances of being approved were good or not. I also got a lot of help from Julie. It wasn't that difficult, there is just a lot of paper work to fill out.

4. I think my situation is a little different than most. I worked full-time up until 2003 (with 2001 & 2002 having fewer hours because of health issues). I quit working in 2003. I then got a part-time job delivering papers one day a week starting in May of that same year. I then began working part-time in October 2003 working 15 hours per week in an office and quit the paper job. I finally applied for disability in 2006 and I was still working. I am actually still working at the same place. It is still a bit confusing to me, but I believe they base it on your "substantial income". You can't have earned more than XX amount of dollars per month. I believe it was $600 or $800 something, but I'm not sure what it is now. I, obviously, fell below that dollar amount.

5. I can't really answer this one because I just starting receiving benefits in February. They haven't asked me for any info as of yet.

6. I think this varies depending on your medical condition. For me, I will receive benefits for 3 years and then I will be re-evaluated. If I still qualify, then I will continue receiving benefits. I'm not exactly sure what happens if you no longer qualify. I don't think they cut you off on the spot, but I'm not sure.

7. <a target=_blank class=ftalternatingbarlinklarge href="http://www.ssa.gov/dibplan/dqualify2.htm">http://www.ssa.gov/dibplan/dqualify2.htm</a> Here is a link to their website. You have to have 40 credits to be able to receive benefits and of those 40, 20 have to be within the last 10 years. You can still earn credits working part-time (you earn credits based on your income amounts). I just don't know if it would be enough for you to qualify. I don't really remember what mine were, but I did have 40 credits. Also, I have worked part-time hours since 2002 and I didn't apply for disability until 2006.

8. I have not had IV therapy for probably 20 years. I have had yearly infections, but they have always been treated with oral antibiotics. I was on one round of TOBI somewhere in that time frame. I think I probably qualified because my pft scores are within their guidelines. I also think it depends on the case worker that is assigned to your case (just my opinion). I was approved on my first application. I was very surprised. I had a nice case worker. I was approved within a couple of months.

When I first contacted social security to find out how to apply, I was told that 95-96% of initial claims are denied for lack of medical information. When I applied, I had copies of all my medical records to send along with the paper work and also a letter from my dr.

Hope that helps a little bit. I'm sure Julie can give you much more info.

Allisa35 · Nov 29, 2007

Well, I can try to offer some answers. I am fairly new to this myself (I was just approved at the beginning of the year). If you talk to Julie, I'm sure she can answer your questions. She helped me a lot too.

1. I think mine was fairly close to what they approved. I don't really remember what my report said, but I believe the amounts were fairly close. It is based on your work history.

2. I don't know for sure. They have various guidelines that they follow for cystic fibrosis.

3. I didn't use a lawyer. I did call the hotline for Beth Sufian and spoke with her briefly to see if she thought my chances of being approved were good or not. I also got a lot of help from Julie. It wasn't that difficult, there is just a lot of paper work to fill out.

4. I think my situation is a little different than most. I worked full-time up until 2003 (with 2001 & 2002 having fewer hours because of health issues). I quit working in 2003. I then got a part-time job delivering papers one day a week starting in May of that same year. I then began working part-time in October 2003 working 15 hours per week in an office and quit the paper job. I finally applied for disability in 2006 and I was still working. I am actually still working at the same place. It is still a bit confusing to me, but I believe they base it on your "substantial income". You can't have earned more than XX amount of dollars per month. I believe it was $600 or $800 something, but I'm not sure what it is now. I, obviously, fell below that dollar amount.

5. I can't really answer this one because I just starting receiving benefits in February. They haven't asked me for any info as of yet.

6. I think this varies depending on your medical condition. For me, I will receive benefits for 3 years and then I will be re-evaluated. If I still qualify, then I will continue receiving benefits. I'm not exactly sure what happens if you no longer qualify. I don't think they cut you off on the spot, but I'm not sure.

7. <a target=_blank class=ftalternatingbarlinklarge href="http://www.ssa.gov/dibplan/dqualify2.htm">http://www.ssa.gov/dibplan/dqualify2.htm</a> Here is a link to their website. You have to have 40 credits to be able to receive benefits and of those 40, 20 have to be within the last 10 years. You can still earn credits working part-time (you earn credits based on your income amounts). I just don't know if it would be enough for you to qualify. I don't really remember what mine were, but I did have 40 credits. Also, I have worked part-time hours since 2002 and I didn't apply for disability until 2006.

8. I have not had IV therapy for probably 20 years. I have had yearly infections, but they have always been treated with oral antibiotics. I was on one round of TOBI somewhere in that time frame. I think I probably qualified because my pft scores are within their guidelines. I also think it depends on the case worker that is assigned to your case (just my opinion). I was approved on my first application. I was very surprised. I had a nice case worker. I was approved within a couple of months.

When I first contacted social security to find out how to apply, I was told that 95-96% of initial claims are denied for lack of medical information. When I applied, I had copies of all my medical records to send along with the paper work and also a letter from my dr.

Hope that helps a little bit. I'm sure Julie can give you much more info.

Allisa35 · Nov 29, 2007

Well, I can try to offer some answers. I am fairly new to this myself (I was just approved at the beginning of the year). If you talk to Julie, I'm sure she can answer your questions. She helped me a lot too.

1. I think mine was fairly close to what they approved. I don't really remember what my report said, but I believe the amounts were fairly close. It is based on your work history.

2. I don't know for sure. They have various guidelines that they follow for cystic fibrosis.

3. I didn't use a lawyer. I did call the hotline for Beth Sufian and spoke with her briefly to see if she thought my chances of being approved were good or not. I also got a lot of help from Julie. It wasn't that difficult, there is just a lot of paper work to fill out.

4. I think my situation is a little different than most. I worked full-time up until 2003 (with 2001 & 2002 having fewer hours because of health issues). I quit working in 2003. I then got a part-time job delivering papers one day a week starting in May of that same year. I then began working part-time in October 2003 working 15 hours per week in an office and quit the paper job. I finally applied for disability in 2006 and I was still working. I am actually still working at the same place. It is still a bit confusing to me, but I believe they base it on your "substantial income". You can't have earned more than XX amount of dollars per month. I believe it was $600 or $800 something, but I'm not sure what it is now. I, obviously, fell below that dollar amount.

5. I can't really answer this one because I just starting receiving benefits in February. They haven't asked me for any info as of yet.

6. I think this varies depending on your medical condition. For me, I will receive benefits for 3 years and then I will be re-evaluated. If I still qualify, then I will continue receiving benefits. I'm not exactly sure what happens if you no longer qualify. I don't think they cut you off on the spot, but I'm not sure.

7. <a target=_blank class=ftalternatingbarlinklarge href="http://www.ssa.gov/dibplan/dqualify2.htm">http://www.ssa.gov/dibplan/dqualify2.htm</a> Here is a link to their website. You have to have 40 credits to be able to receive benefits and of those 40, 20 have to be within the last 10 years. You can still earn credits working part-time (you earn credits based on your income amounts). I just don't know if it would be enough for you to qualify. I don't really remember what mine were, but I did have 40 credits. Also, I have worked part-time hours since 2002 and I didn't apply for disability until 2006.

8. I have not had IV therapy for probably 20 years. I have had yearly infections, but they have always been treated with oral antibiotics. I was on one round of TOBI somewhere in that time frame. I think I probably qualified because my pft scores are within their guidelines. I also think it depends on the case worker that is assigned to your case (just my opinion). I was approved on my first application. I was very surprised. I had a nice case worker. I was approved within a couple of months.

When I first contacted social security to find out how to apply, I was told that 95-96% of initial claims are denied for lack of medical information. When I applied, I had copies of all my medical records to send along with the paper work and also a letter from my dr.

Hope that helps a little bit. I'm sure Julie can give you much more info.

Allisa35 · Nov 29, 2007

Well, I can try to offer some answers. I am fairly new to this myself (I was just approved at the beginning of the year). If you talk to Julie, I'm sure she can answer your questions. She helped me a lot too.

1. I think mine was fairly close to what they approved. I don't really remember what my report said, but I believe the amounts were fairly close. It is based on your work history.

2. I don't know for sure. They have various guidelines that they follow for cystic fibrosis.

3. I didn't use a lawyer. I did call the hotline for Beth Sufian and spoke with her briefly to see if she thought my chances of being approved were good or not. I also got a lot of help from Julie. It wasn't that difficult, there is just a lot of paper work to fill out.

4. I think my situation is a little different than most. I worked full-time up until 2003 (with 2001 & 2002 having fewer hours because of health issues). I quit working in 2003. I then got a part-time job delivering papers one day a week starting in May of that same year. I then began working part-time in October 2003 working 15 hours per week in an office and quit the paper job. I finally applied for disability in 2006 and I was still working. I am actually still working at the same place. It is still a bit confusing to me, but I believe they base it on your "substantial income". You can't have earned more than XX amount of dollars per month. I believe it was $600 or $800 something, but I'm not sure what it is now. I, obviously, fell below that dollar amount.

5. I can't really answer this one because I just starting receiving benefits in February. They haven't asked me for any info as of yet.

6. I think this varies depending on your medical condition. For me, I will receive benefits for 3 years and then I will be re-evaluated. If I still qualify, then I will continue receiving benefits. I'm not exactly sure what happens if you no longer qualify. I don't think they cut you off on the spot, but I'm not sure.

7. <a target=_blank class=ftalternatingbarlinklarge href="http://www.ssa.gov/dibplan/dqualify2.htm">http://www.ssa.gov/dibplan/dqualify2.htm</a> Here is a link to their website. You have to have 40 credits to be able to receive benefits and of those 40, 20 have to be within the last 10 years. You can still earn credits working part-time (you earn credits based on your income amounts). I just don't know if it would be enough for you to qualify. I don't really remember what mine were, but I did have 40 credits. Also, I have worked part-time hours since 2002 and I didn't apply for disability until 2006.

8. I have not had IV therapy for probably 20 years. I have had yearly infections, but they have always been treated with oral antibiotics. I was on one round of TOBI somewhere in that time frame. I think I probably qualified because my pft scores are within their guidelines. I also think it depends on the case worker that is assigned to your case (just my opinion). I was approved on my first application. I was very surprised. I had a nice case worker. I was approved within a couple of months.

When I first contacted social security to find out how to apply, I was told that 95-96% of initial claims are denied for lack of medical information. When I applied, I had copies of all my medical records to send along with the paper work and also a letter from my dr.

Hope that helps a little bit. I'm sure Julie can give you much more info.

Allisa35 · Nov 29, 2007

Well, I can try to offer some answers. I am fairly new to this myself (I was just approved at the beginning of the year). If you talk to Julie, I'm sure she can answer your questions. She helped me a lot too.

1. I think mine was fairly close to what they approved. I don't really remember what my report said, but I believe the amounts were fairly close. It is based on your work history.

2. I don't know for sure. They have various guidelines that they follow for cystic fibrosis.

3. I didn't use a lawyer. I did call the hotline for Beth Sufian and spoke with her briefly to see if she thought my chances of being approved were good or not. I also got a lot of help from Julie. It wasn't that difficult, there is just a lot of paper work to fill out.

4. I think my situation is a little different than most. I worked full-time up until 2003 (with 2001 & 2002 having fewer hours because of health issues). I quit working in 2003. I then got a part-time job delivering papers one day a week starting in May of that same year. I then began working part-time in October 2003 working 15 hours per week in an office and quit the paper job. I finally applied for disability in 2006 and I was still working. I am actually still working at the same place. It is still a bit confusing to me, but I believe they base it on your "substantial income". You can't have earned more than XX amount of dollars per month. I believe it was $600 or $800 something, but I'm not sure what it is now. I, obviously, fell below that dollar amount.

5. I can't really answer this one because I just starting receiving benefits in February. They haven't asked me for any info as of yet.

6. I think this varies depending on your medical condition. For me, I will receive benefits for 3 years and then I will be re-evaluated. If I still qualify, then I will continue receiving benefits. I'm not exactly sure what happens if you no longer qualify. I don't think they cut you off on the spot, but I'm not sure.

7. <a target=_blank class=ftalternatingbarlinklarge href="http://www.ssa.gov/dibplan/dqualify2.htm">http://www.ssa.gov/dibplan/dqualify2.htm</a> Here is a link to their website. You have to have 40 credits to be able to receive benefits and of those 40, 20 have to be within the last 10 years. You can still earn credits working part-time (you earn credits based on your income amounts). I just don't know if it would be enough for you to qualify. I don't really remember what mine were, but I did have 40 credits. Also, I have worked part-time hours since 2002 and I didn't apply for disability until 2006.

8. I have not had IV therapy for probably 20 years. I have had yearly infections, but they have always been treated with oral antibiotics. I was on one round of TOBI somewhere in that time frame. I think I probably qualified because my pft scores are within their guidelines. I also think it depends on the case worker that is assigned to your case (just my opinion). I was approved on my first application. I was very surprised. I had a nice case worker. I was approved within a couple of months.

When I first contacted social security to find out how to apply, I was told that 95-96% of initial claims are denied for lack of medical information. When I applied, I had copies of all my medical records to send along with the paper work and also a letter from my dr.

Hope that helps a little bit. I'm sure Julie can give you much more info.

julie · Nov 29, 2007

1) I'm not sure how they figure this out, but for us, our "annual report" was significantly less than what mark is actually receiving. The annual report said about $500, and he receives $821, PLUS each of the children get $105 a month, to get to the total monthly allowance for our family of $1136.

2) There are specific criteria that you must meet, or "equal" in order to receive SSDI. Here are the CF impairment listings: <a target=_blank class=ftalternatingbarlinklarge href="http://www.ssa.gov/disability/professionals/bluebook/103.00-Respiratory-Childhood.htm">http://www.ssa.gov/disability/...piratory-Childhood.htm</a> , I'd recommend printing it out (103.04) and becoming very familiar with them in case you have to fight for your benefits.

3) We had a lawyer, but in hindsight, he knew NOTHING about CF and the only thing he did to benefit our case was to get a vocational specialist there (by filing some paperwork), who never even spoke at the case anyways so we didn't even need him. It was a big waste of $5k that he ended up walking away with for doing virtually nothing.

I did get some help from Beth, who gave me a lot of information, pointers and suggestions. I only won our case because of her input.

I HIGHLY recommend you apply without a lawyer, and even fight your first denial without a lawyer (nearly everyone gets denied at least once)

If you apply and get denied, appeal the denial ASAP, this will preserve any "back payment" benefits that you'd be entitled to. For example, if you apply in December and get denied in February, appeal it and then you win the appeal in March, you are going to get December, Jan, Feb, March of back pay and start receiving regular payments in April or May (takes a while for paper processing). NEVER EVER EVER reapply or you loose this "back payment" entitlement. It took Mark and I 6 appeals and 1 hearing over a 27 month period to get his benefits.

4) Here is a link to the explanation of working WHILE receiving SSDI: <a target=_blank class=ftalternatingbarlinklarge href="http://ssa-custhelp.ssa.gov/cgi-bin/ssa.cfg/php/enduser/std_adp.php?p_faqid=317&p_created=959362523&p_sid=nYIRRYRi&p_accessibility=0&p_redirect=&p_lva=&p_sp=cF9zcmNoPTEmcF9zb3J0X2J5PSZwX2dyaWRzb3J0PSZwX3Jvd19jbnQ9MzMsMzMmcF9wcm9kcz0mcF9jYXRzPTEwNSw4OCZwX3B2PSZwX2N2PTIuODgmcF9zZWFyY2hfdHlwZT1hbnN3ZXJzLnNlYXJjaF9ubCZwX3BhZ2U9MQ**&p_li=&p_topview=1
">http://ssa-custhelp.ssa.gov/cg...Q**&p_li=&p_topview=1
</a>Basically, you can earn $639 in 2007 ($659 in 2008) and STILL receive your SSDI benefits. If you have a month where you make more than that "allowed" amount, then it counts as a "trial work" month-but you STILL receive your SSDI benefits AND the money you earn from working. You are entitled to nine "trial work" months (they do NOT have to be consecutive) in a 60 month rolling period.
Once you've accumulated 9 months of this trial work period, you will stop receiving benefits any month that your earnings are at a "substantial" level. That "substantial" is $900 in 2007 ($940 in 2008.
Here's the safety net part: For 3 years/36 months AFTER you finish the "trial work period" you can start your benefits again if you fall below the "substantial" ($900 for 2007, $940 for 2008) amount in any month, and can prove that you still have an impairment.

5) On SSDI, there is no monitoring of "family" finances. They only monitor YOUR (you the SSDI recipient) income from work. And they do not check your bank accounts or anything like that, there is NO limit to how much you have in the bank while on SSDI.

6) They do periodic assessments where they will send a form that your doctor has to fill out. In the 4 years that Mark has been on SSDI, we've received one form and it's so basic. It just asks if the condition is better, worse or the same and what the long-term prognosis is.

7) I've been advised by someone on here not to work part-time for too long because it can screw your SSDI benefit amount because of the 10 year look back. Any experience here?

8) Mark had never had IV antibiotics/therapy when we applied for his SSDI. This past January is the FIRST time he's ever had IV antibiotics. So YES, you can still get on SSDI without it. I can help you out with that if you like.

In order to figure out how many credits you would have (and it would be an estimate without actually seeing your work history) I would need to know your age, as it is based on age and how long you've worked. I imagine you'd be somewhere in the 24-30 age category, so for that category, you'd need half of the time between the age 21 and when you filed for disability.

I hope this helps, and if you PM me or email me I can send you some documents to help you start getting organized for your case. How to outline things so that the SSA department can EASILY see that you meet their criteria listings.

I've helped a handful of people on this site win their case, either on the first application, or in subsequent appeals, and I'd be happy to help you too!

division902@verizon.net

julie · Nov 29, 2007

1) I'm not sure how they figure this out, but for us, our "annual report" was significantly less than what mark is actually receiving. The annual report said about $500, and he receives $821, PLUS each of the children get $105 a month, to get to the total monthly allowance for our family of $1136.

2) There are specific criteria that you must meet, or "equal" in order to receive SSDI. Here are the CF impairment listings: <a target=_blank class=ftalternatingbarlinklarge href="http://www.ssa.gov/disability/professionals/bluebook/103.00-Respiratory-Childhood.htm">http://www.ssa.gov/disability/...piratory-Childhood.htm</a> , I'd recommend printing it out (103.04) and becoming very familiar with them in case you have to fight for your benefits.

3) We had a lawyer, but in hindsight, he knew NOTHING about CF and the only thing he did to benefit our case was to get a vocational specialist there (by filing some paperwork), who never even spoke at the case anyways so we didn't even need him. It was a big waste of $5k that he ended up walking away with for doing virtually nothing.

I did get some help from Beth, who gave me a lot of information, pointers and suggestions. I only won our case because of her input.

I HIGHLY recommend you apply without a lawyer, and even fight your first denial without a lawyer (nearly everyone gets denied at least once)

If you apply and get denied, appeal the denial ASAP, this will preserve any "back payment" benefits that you'd be entitled to. For example, if you apply in December and get denied in February, appeal it and then you win the appeal in March, you are going to get December, Jan, Feb, March of back pay and start receiving regular payments in April or May (takes a while for paper processing). NEVER EVER EVER reapply or you loose this "back payment" entitlement. It took Mark and I 6 appeals and 1 hearing over a 27 month period to get his benefits.

4) Here is a link to the explanation of working WHILE receiving SSDI: <a target=_blank class=ftalternatingbarlinklarge href="http://ssa-custhelp.ssa.gov/cgi-bin/ssa.cfg/php/enduser/std_adp.php?p_faqid=317&p_created=959362523&p_sid=nYIRRYRi&p_accessibility=0&p_redirect=&p_lva=&p_sp=cF9zcmNoPTEmcF9zb3J0X2J5PSZwX2dyaWRzb3J0PSZwX3Jvd19jbnQ9MzMsMzMmcF9wcm9kcz0mcF9jYXRzPTEwNSw4OCZwX3B2PSZwX2N2PTIuODgmcF9zZWFyY2hfdHlwZT1hbnN3ZXJzLnNlYXJjaF9ubCZwX3BhZ2U9MQ**&p_li=&p_topview=1
">http://ssa-custhelp.ssa.gov/cg...Q**&p_li=&p_topview=1
</a>Basically, you can earn $639 in 2007 ($659 in 2008) and STILL receive your SSDI benefits. If you have a month where you make more than that "allowed" amount, then it counts as a "trial work" month-but you STILL receive your SSDI benefits AND the money you earn from working. You are entitled to nine "trial work" months (they do NOT have to be consecutive) in a 60 month rolling period.
Once you've accumulated 9 months of this trial work period, you will stop receiving benefits any month that your earnings are at a "substantial" level. That "substantial" is $900 in 2007 ($940 in 2008.
Here's the safety net part: For 3 years/36 months AFTER you finish the "trial work period" you can start your benefits again if you fall below the "substantial" ($900 for 2007, $940 for 2008) amount in any month, and can prove that you still have an impairment.

5) On SSDI, there is no monitoring of "family" finances. They only monitor YOUR (you the SSDI recipient) income from work. And they do not check your bank accounts or anything like that, there is NO limit to how much you have in the bank while on SSDI.

6) They do periodic assessments where they will send a form that your doctor has to fill out. In the 4 years that Mark has been on SSDI, we've received one form and it's so basic. It just asks if the condition is better, worse or the same and what the long-term prognosis is.

7) I've been advised by someone on here not to work part-time for too long because it can screw your SSDI benefit amount because of the 10 year look back. Any experience here?

8) Mark had never had IV antibiotics/therapy when we applied for his SSDI. This past January is the FIRST time he's ever had IV antibiotics. So YES, you can still get on SSDI without it. I can help you out with that if you like.

In order to figure out how many credits you would have (and it would be an estimate without actually seeing your work history) I would need to know your age, as it is based on age and how long you've worked. I imagine you'd be somewhere in the 24-30 age category, so for that category, you'd need half of the time between the age 21 and when you filed for disability.

I hope this helps, and if you PM me or email me I can send you some documents to help you start getting organized for your case. How to outline things so that the SSA department can EASILY see that you meet their criteria listings.

I've helped a handful of people on this site win their case, either on the first application, or in subsequent appeals, and I'd be happy to help you too!

division902@verizon.net

julie · Nov 29, 2007

1) I'm not sure how they figure this out, but for us, our "annual report" was significantly less than what mark is actually receiving. The annual report said about $500, and he receives $821, PLUS each of the children get $105 a month, to get to the total monthly allowance for our family of $1136.

2) There are specific criteria that you must meet, or "equal" in order to receive SSDI. Here are the CF impairment listings: <a target=_blank class=ftalternatingbarlinklarge href="http://www.ssa.gov/disability/professionals/bluebook/103.00-Respiratory-Childhood.htm">http://www.ssa.gov/disability/...piratory-Childhood.htm</a> , I'd recommend printing it out (103.04) and becoming very familiar with them in case you have to fight for your benefits.

3) We had a lawyer, but in hindsight, he knew NOTHING about CF and the only thing he did to benefit our case was to get a vocational specialist there (by filing some paperwork), who never even spoke at the case anyways so we didn't even need him. It was a big waste of $5k that he ended up walking away with for doing virtually nothing.

I did get some help from Beth, who gave me a lot of information, pointers and suggestions. I only won our case because of her input.

I HIGHLY recommend you apply without a lawyer, and even fight your first denial without a lawyer (nearly everyone gets denied at least once)

If you apply and get denied, appeal the denial ASAP, this will preserve any "back payment" benefits that you'd be entitled to. For example, if you apply in December and get denied in February, appeal it and then you win the appeal in March, you are going to get December, Jan, Feb, March of back pay and start receiving regular payments in April or May (takes a while for paper processing). NEVER EVER EVER reapply or you loose this "back payment" entitlement. It took Mark and I 6 appeals and 1 hearing over a 27 month period to get his benefits.

4) Here is a link to the explanation of working WHILE receiving SSDI: <a target=_blank class=ftalternatingbarlinklarge href="http://ssa-custhelp.ssa.gov/cgi-bin/ssa.cfg/php/enduser/std_adp.php?p_faqid=317&p_created=959362523&p_sid=nYIRRYRi&p_accessibility=0&p_redirect=&p_lva=&p_sp=cF9zcmNoPTEmcF9zb3J0X2J5PSZwX2dyaWRzb3J0PSZwX3Jvd19jbnQ9MzMsMzMmcF9wcm9kcz0mcF9jYXRzPTEwNSw4OCZwX3B2PSZwX2N2PTIuODgmcF9zZWFyY2hfdHlwZT1hbnN3ZXJzLnNlYXJjaF9ubCZwX3BhZ2U9MQ**&p_li=&p_topview=1
">http://ssa-custhelp.ssa.gov/cg...Q**&p_li=&p_topview=1
</a>Basically, you can earn $639 in 2007 ($659 in 2008) and STILL receive your SSDI benefits. If you have a month where you make more than that "allowed" amount, then it counts as a "trial work" month-but you STILL receive your SSDI benefits AND the money you earn from working. You are entitled to nine "trial work" months (they do NOT have to be consecutive) in a 60 month rolling period.
Once you've accumulated 9 months of this trial work period, you will stop receiving benefits any month that your earnings are at a "substantial" level. That "substantial" is $900 in 2007 ($940 in 2008.
Here's the safety net part: For 3 years/36 months AFTER you finish the "trial work period" you can start your benefits again if you fall below the "substantial" ($900 for 2007, $940 for 2008) amount in any month, and can prove that you still have an impairment.

5) On SSDI, there is no monitoring of "family" finances. They only monitor YOUR (you the SSDI recipient) income from work. And they do not check your bank accounts or anything like that, there is NO limit to how much you have in the bank while on SSDI.

6) They do periodic assessments where they will send a form that your doctor has to fill out. In the 4 years that Mark has been on SSDI, we've received one form and it's so basic. It just asks if the condition is better, worse or the same and what the long-term prognosis is.

7) I've been advised by someone on here not to work part-time for too long because it can screw your SSDI benefit amount because of the 10 year look back. Any experience here?

8) Mark had never had IV antibiotics/therapy when we applied for his SSDI. This past January is the FIRST time he's ever had IV antibiotics. So YES, you can still get on SSDI without it. I can help you out with that if you like.

In order to figure out how many credits you would have (and it would be an estimate without actually seeing your work history) I would need to know your age, as it is based on age and how long you've worked. I imagine you'd be somewhere in the 24-30 age category, so for that category, you'd need half of the time between the age 21 and when you filed for disability.

I hope this helps, and if you PM me or email me I can send you some documents to help you start getting organized for your case. How to outline things so that the SSA department can EASILY see that you meet their criteria listings.

I've helped a handful of people on this site win their case, either on the first application, or in subsequent appeals, and I'd be happy to help you too!

division902@verizon.net

julie · Nov 29, 2007

1) I'm not sure how they figure this out, but for us, our "annual report" was significantly less than what mark is actually receiving. The annual report said about $500, and he receives $821, PLUS each of the children get $105 a month, to get to the total monthly allowance for our family of $1136.

2) There are specific criteria that you must meet, or "equal" in order to receive SSDI. Here are the CF impairment listings: <a target=_blank class=ftalternatingbarlinklarge href="http://www.ssa.gov/disability/professionals/bluebook/103.00-Respiratory-Childhood.htm">http://www.ssa.gov/disability/...piratory-Childhood.htm</a> , I'd recommend printing it out (103.04) and becoming very familiar with them in case you have to fight for your benefits.

3) We had a lawyer, but in hindsight, he knew NOTHING about CF and the only thing he did to benefit our case was to get a vocational specialist there (by filing some paperwork), who never even spoke at the case anyways so we didn't even need him. It was a big waste of $5k that he ended up walking away with for doing virtually nothing.

I did get some help from Beth, who gave me a lot of information, pointers and suggestions. I only won our case because of her input.

I HIGHLY recommend you apply without a lawyer, and even fight your first denial without a lawyer (nearly everyone gets denied at least once)

If you apply and get denied, appeal the denial ASAP, this will preserve any "back payment" benefits that you'd be entitled to. For example, if you apply in December and get denied in February, appeal it and then you win the appeal in March, you are going to get December, Jan, Feb, March of back pay and start receiving regular payments in April or May (takes a while for paper processing). NEVER EVER EVER reapply or you loose this "back payment" entitlement. It took Mark and I 6 appeals and 1 hearing over a 27 month period to get his benefits.

4) Here is a link to the explanation of working WHILE receiving SSDI: <a target=_blank class=ftalternatingbarlinklarge href="http://ssa-custhelp.ssa.gov/cgi-bin/ssa.cfg/php/enduser/std_adp.php?p_faqid=317&p_created=959362523&p_sid=nYIRRYRi&p_accessibility=0&p_redirect=&p_lva=&p_sp=cF9zcmNoPTEmcF9zb3J0X2J5PSZwX2dyaWRzb3J0PSZwX3Jvd19jbnQ9MzMsMzMmcF9wcm9kcz0mcF9jYXRzPTEwNSw4OCZwX3B2PSZwX2N2PTIuODgmcF9zZWFyY2hfdHlwZT1hbnN3ZXJzLnNlYXJjaF9ubCZwX3BhZ2U9MQ**&p_li=&p_topview=1
">http://ssa-custhelp.ssa.gov/cg...Q**&p_li=&p_topview=1
</a>Basically, you can earn $639 in 2007 ($659 in 2008) and STILL receive your SSDI benefits. If you have a month where you make more than that "allowed" amount, then it counts as a "trial work" month-but you STILL receive your SSDI benefits AND the money you earn from working. You are entitled to nine "trial work" months (they do NOT have to be consecutive) in a 60 month rolling period.
Once you've accumulated 9 months of this trial work period, you will stop receiving benefits any month that your earnings are at a "substantial" level. That "substantial" is $900 in 2007 ($940 in 2008.
Here's the safety net part: For 3 years/36 months AFTER you finish the "trial work period" you can start your benefits again if you fall below the "substantial" ($900 for 2007, $940 for 2008) amount in any month, and can prove that you still have an impairment.

5) On SSDI, there is no monitoring of "family" finances. They only monitor YOUR (you the SSDI recipient) income from work. And they do not check your bank accounts or anything like that, there is NO limit to how much you have in the bank while on SSDI.

6) They do periodic assessments where they will send a form that your doctor has to fill out. In the 4 years that Mark has been on SSDI, we've received one form and it's so basic. It just asks if the condition is better, worse or the same and what the long-term prognosis is.

7) I've been advised by someone on here not to work part-time for too long because it can screw your SSDI benefit amount because of the 10 year look back. Any experience here?

8) Mark had never had IV antibiotics/therapy when we applied for his SSDI. This past January is the FIRST time he's ever had IV antibiotics. So YES, you can still get on SSDI without it. I can help you out with that if you like.

In order to figure out how many credits you would have (and it would be an estimate without actually seeing your work history) I would need to know your age, as it is based on age and how long you've worked. I imagine you'd be somewhere in the 24-30 age category, so for that category, you'd need half of the time between the age 21 and when you filed for disability.

I hope this helps, and if you PM me or email me I can send you some documents to help you start getting organized for your case. How to outline things so that the SSA department can EASILY see that you meet their criteria listings.

I've helped a handful of people on this site win their case, either on the first application, or in subsequent appeals, and I'd be happy to help you too!

division902@verizon.net

julie · Nov 29, 2007

1) I'm not sure how they figure this out, but for us, our "annual report" was significantly less than what mark is actually receiving. The annual report said about $500, and he receives $821, PLUS each of the children get $105 a month, to get to the total monthly allowance for our family of $1136.

2) There are specific criteria that you must meet, or "equal" in order to receive SSDI. Here are the CF impairment listings: <a target=_blank class=ftalternatingbarlinklarge href="http://www.ssa.gov/disability/professionals/bluebook/103.00-Respiratory-Childhood.htm">http://www.ssa.gov/disability/...piratory-Childhood.htm</a> , I'd recommend printing it out (103.04) and becoming very familiar with them in case you have to fight for your benefits.

3) We had a lawyer, but in hindsight, he knew NOTHING about CF and the only thing he did to benefit our case was to get a vocational specialist there (by filing some paperwork), who never even spoke at the case anyways so we didn't even need him. It was a big waste of $5k that he ended up walking away with for doing virtually nothing.

I did get some help from Beth, who gave me a lot of information, pointers and suggestions. I only won our case because of her input.

I HIGHLY recommend you apply without a lawyer, and even fight your first denial without a lawyer (nearly everyone gets denied at least once)

If you apply and get denied, appeal the denial ASAP, this will preserve any "back payment" benefits that you'd be entitled to. For example, if you apply in December and get denied in February, appeal it and then you win the appeal in March, you are going to get December, Jan, Feb, March of back pay and start receiving regular payments in April or May (takes a while for paper processing). NEVER EVER EVER reapply or you loose this "back payment" entitlement. It took Mark and I 6 appeals and 1 hearing over a 27 month period to get his benefits.

4) Here is a link to the explanation of working WHILE receiving SSDI: <a target=_blank class=ftalternatingbarlinklarge href="http://ssa-custhelp.ssa.gov/cgi-bin/ssa.cfg/php/enduser/std_adp.php?p_faqid=317&p_created=959362523&p_sid=nYIRRYRi&p_accessibility=0&p_redirect=&p_lva=&p_sp=cF9zcmNoPTEmcF9zb3J0X2J5PSZwX2dyaWRzb3J0PSZwX3Jvd19jbnQ9MzMsMzMmcF9wcm9kcz0mcF9jYXRzPTEwNSw4OCZwX3B2PSZwX2N2PTIuODgmcF9zZWFyY2hfdHlwZT1hbnN3ZXJzLnNlYXJjaF9ubCZwX3BhZ2U9MQ**&p_li=&p_topview=1
">http://ssa-custhelp.ssa.gov/cg...Q**&p_li=&p_topview=1
</a>Basically, you can earn $639 in 2007 ($659 in 2008) and STILL receive your SSDI benefits. If you have a month where you make more than that "allowed" amount, then it counts as a "trial work" month-but you STILL receive your SSDI benefits AND the money you earn from working. You are entitled to nine "trial work" months (they do NOT have to be consecutive) in a 60 month rolling period.
Once you've accumulated 9 months of this trial work period, you will stop receiving benefits any month that your earnings are at a "substantial" level. That "substantial" is $900 in 2007 ($940 in 2008.
Here's the safety net part: For 3 years/36 months AFTER you finish the "trial work period" you can start your benefits again if you fall below the "substantial" ($900 for 2007, $940 for 2008) amount in any month, and can prove that you still have an impairment.

5) On SSDI, there is no monitoring of "family" finances. They only monitor YOUR (you the SSDI recipient) income from work. And they do not check your bank accounts or anything like that, there is NO limit to how much you have in the bank while on SSDI.

6) They do periodic assessments where they will send a form that your doctor has to fill out. In the 4 years that Mark has been on SSDI, we've received one form and it's so basic. It just asks if the condition is better, worse or the same and what the long-term prognosis is.

7) I've been advised by someone on here not to work part-time for too long because it can screw your SSDI benefit amount because of the 10 year look back. Any experience here?

8) Mark had never had IV antibiotics/therapy when we applied for his SSDI. This past January is the FIRST time he's ever had IV antibiotics. So YES, you can still get on SSDI without it. I can help you out with that if you like.

In order to figure out how many credits you would have (and it would be an estimate without actually seeing your work history) I would need to know your age, as it is based on age and how long you've worked. I imagine you'd be somewhere in the 24-30 age category, so for that category, you'd need half of the time between the age 21 and when you filed for disability.

I hope this helps, and if you PM me or email me I can send you some documents to help you start getting organized for your case. How to outline things so that the SSA department can EASILY see that you meet their criteria listings.

I've helped a handful of people on this site win their case, either on the first application, or in subsequent appeals, and I'd be happy to help you too!

division902@verizon.net

julie · Nov 29, 2007